Preview Fable 2: One button to rule them all

[DamnElfGirl]

http://www.gamersyde.com/stream_4133_en.html

This video from gamerside is very interesting. Yes, we see a lot of Moly´s hyperbole (deep as Virtua Fighter, lol no Mr. Moly), but that´s expected from him.

I found the goofy French game reviewers more interesting than either Molyneux or his game. At least they managed to get a chuckle out of me.

 

[Edward_R_Murrow]

Ah, Chris Avellone and his stick figures, brilliant stuff (errr...that is him....right?).

 

[thesheeep]

True.. in the video, they talk about that button (or that buttonS)

If you press that button long enough, you block, press it short and you will attack, etc.
I think similar actions apply to the other buttons..

But nvm.
More disturbing than this unnecessary"revolution" of button smashing is, that it happens in combination with the invincibility of the player.

And I would bet my *ss that those two are not the only changes in a negative (or at least not positive) direction...


Damn, I need plane tickets...

 

[Saxon1974]

<a>Worthplaying</a> reports that Molyneux is <a>talking crazy again</a>:

<blockquote>Molyneux began with a discussion of the considerably altered combat system...

"I want a system which is really accessible to use within a role-playing game, but a system that is much, much deeper than it was in Fable," he claimed. "[Fable's] combat was a little bit too button-mashy for my tastes. There wasn't enough variation there."

Surprisingly, his solution to this quandary was to simplify the control scheme, eliminating two of the three combat buttons from the original game. ...

"I know that's a pretty strange choice," he said, "because normally, in [Fable], we had the attack button, we had the block button, we had a parry and flourish button. We had three buttons, and we've reduced all that down to one button. But we want to try to make that as deep as we possibly can."</blockquote>Not as strange as one may think. Dumbing things down and claiming that what's left will be loaded with depth is a <a>standard fare</a> these days.

<blockquote>With that, Molyneux launched into a brief discussion of how death is portrayed in video games, calmly (but sharply) voicing his displeasure with how recent games have used checkpoint systems as a crutch. "The idea of most games, including Fable, is that when you die, you go back to the last checkpoint or the start of the level," he said. "I just think that that's stupid nowadays. It really pisses me off. And I really feel ... if I do it more than twice, I feel like throwing the controller across the room. Because all the flow of the combat is broken by that, by you being defeated."</blockquote>Fable 2: a game for 12 year olds by a grown up with a mentality of a 12 year old.

<blockquote>In place of such a system is one in which the player will fall in battle, but not actually die. Instead, as the surrounding enemies continue to pummel the hero, he will earn permanent scars that will shape the way he is perceived by other characters. "If you 'die' a lot, you get scarred a lot," Molyneux said. "You get scarred a lot, people react to you differently. Your wife, when you go back home, will come out and say, 'God, what happened to your face?' And that is a new emotion."</blockquote>... Huh?

I just don't get why this guy is so popular and gets so much media attention. He made a couple of decent games but I really think he is nuts. He promises way more than ever show up in his games.

I cant wait to button mash on my XBOX 360 in FABLE2!

 

[sportforredneck]

I just don't get why this guy is so popular and gets so much media attention. He made a couple of decent games but I really think he is nuts. He promises way more than ever show up in his games.

And that's why he gets media attention, because he's insane.

 

[Müg]

Does he still have that stupid idea about getting rid of an HUD and replacing it with a fucking dog?

 

[thesheeep]

Didn't he already do that in Black & White?

 

[Fat Dragon]

This invincibility thing sounds really stupid. No matter how much of a weak pussy your character is, he can't lose. I also read in another preview that when your character awakens he is given a temporary boost of power. Not like he needs it, though.

That bad ass barbarian can beat you down into the ground over and over, but according to Peter, your character will get back up with a boost of power and start laying in to the fucker.

Got your ass kicked by a group of bandits? No worries. Instead of ripping your throat open for being such a weakling, they'll take part in some childish humor by kicking you in the ribs over and over. That is, until you wake up and slaughter those bastards.

Final boss being a bitch? Simply wait until you regain consciousness and then start cleaving that fucker in two with your temporary boost of power.

 

[Mamon]

I just don't get why this guy is so popular and gets so much media attention. He made a couple of decent games but I really think he is nuts. He promises way more than ever show up in his games.

Peter Molyneus created what many consider the seminal God game-Populous. The industry will never forget him because of that. Miyamoto, for example, nowadays is more of a Producer and PR face of Nintendo than a designer, but he will always be remembered because of the first Zelda and Super Mario Bros.

People like him because he is entusiastic, he is a gentleman. I prefer that over a dev. that is just a rude loudmouth.

 

[Fat Dragon]

Does he still have that stupid idea about getting rid of an HUD and replacing it with a fucking dog?

That idea has already been confirmed to be in Fable 2. Not sure if it got rid of a HUD or not.

 

[Mamon]

The dog is there, but he didn´t replace the HUD (don´t recall him saying that, most have some misinformation from a journalist or someone here). The dog is basically a sidekick that will help you do certain tasks...and he loves you!

 

[Bradylama]

People like him because he is entusiastic, he is a gentleman. I prefer that over a dev. that is just a rude loudmouth.

So you prefer a polite hack over a rude, crude, cigar-chomping artist.

 

[dagorkan]

Mr Molyneux looks like he just might take it up the ass.

 

[thesheeep]

True.

 

[Naked Ninja]

Actually, the dog does replace the map hud. That's what pete said. He doesn't like map huds, they're too fake, it's not immersive enough, so instead this dog will run around and bark at enemies behind corners and crap. Oh, and you are apparently supposed to love him because he looks cute or some such tripe.

Pete needs to get over the tamagochi thing now, or go back to making Black & White sequels.

And it is one button to perform any melee action. And probably another button toggles you into magic mode, where that original button lets you cast a spell, etc etc. Basically, at any one point, unless you are switching modes, all you need is the direction keys and a single button to do everything. It is lame and clumsy. It's not an elegant design.

And yes, the death thing will make all enemies a cakewalk. Since he expressly dislikes any mechanics which "interrupt the flow" by making you redo bits, as stated in his video, you will never need to redo fights. You'll just have to sit through the tedious "kick him while he is down" sequence before you get back up and wipe them out. And he actually believes that will make gamers "feel" it more?!?! The man is a nut.

 

[rpgcodexusername]

theres lots of articles over at gamasutra how designers should make emotions part of the game. This is why molyneaux is counting every emotional aspect of the game as a positive.

He is just sheepishly following what gamasutra people say is best, when really they dont know half as much as they think.

 

[Rei]

What if your allergic to dogs and seeing one makes you psychologically convulse violently. OR...

What if you just dont like them, and it brings out a nasty emotion: irritation.

This game looks to be shaping up an awful lot like...

Fable... heh

 

[slamelov]

It seems that videogames walk to avoid death because is frustrating. You can see that in MMORPG games. In Ultima Online, when you died, you become a ghost and need a healer or a mage to return to the living world. As a Ghost, you could see the killer setaling the loot from your corpse, but you only could say "OOoOOooOOoOOoOOoOOO".

Now, if you die in a MMORPG, nothing happens, restart in another point and let's continue. Where is the challenge?, Where is the inmersion?. No way for that in Teletubbie land of new videogames. May be some "big" brain thinks that videogames are for dumb people who want's easy gameplay. Shit.

Moulineaux made a great job with Syndicate, Populous and Dungeon Keeper. Nothing more. Black and White is surprising at the beguinning, but boring after first two levels. Fable is a silly game, and Fable 2... I don't want to test it.

Let's hope some games coming fron eastern europe and independent developers change those things. Actually, big videogame market sucks.

 

[psycojester]

Ah poor old Black and White, so much promise and so much disappointment. 5 levels long and 3 of them were complete and utter shit.

I mean who thought it was a good idea, in a game built around the idea or raising your creature to do your bidding to take it away from you for a whole level and then in the final level inflict your creature with a strange collection of ailments that made your creature totally useless.

 

[User was nabbed fit]

One button is still too much! I want neuro implants so I won't even have to move a finger.

 

[Texas Red]

What Im wondering is if he decides to make a REVOLUSHONARY next-gen RPG without any dialogs yet again.

 

[tardtastic]

The idea of contextual combat is nifty. Try the demo for an indie beat-em-up called "Lugaru", or something like that. You're a rabbitpeoplethingy that hits other rabbitpeoplethingies and sometimes wolfpeoplethingies and the combat system is actually quite fun. It's a neat way of doing more with less buttons, and in a game that had other essential RPG elements (that Fable2 will clearly be lacking), it could be really interesting.

but anyway stupid sells

 

[dagorkan]

Lugaru is excellent. I just love that game... Best action game since MDK.

 

[tardtastic]

Oh, I should mention though, that Lugaru only uses contextual combat to do more with LESS buttons - it doesn't reduce it to one, like Fable2 will do. I think it's down to two or three buttons in Lugaru (punch, kick, and then a block/alternate?) I haven't played the game since beating it, memory of it is a touch hazy.

 

[Netherium19]

What Im wondering is if he decides to make a REVOLUSHONARY next-gen RPG without any dialogs yet again.

He intends to do so without the use of an actual "cutscene" system, as in, when Jack of Blades the Second is rambling about how he will pwnz0r your soulZ0MG, you'll just be able to push a single button and initiate a scripted fight....